Nightwalker
by sonicfan1990
Summary: Their journey to explore the wonders and mysteries of the Kalos region leads Ash and his friends to stop by at the Academy City of Bilgin, one of the biggest and most prestigious academies in the region. However, they soon learn there is something evil lurking in the shadows of the city, and the legend that is responsible for all the missing people in town - the Nightwalker.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone, this is the first time I have written a Pokemon fanfiction, so I'm rather excited to have it posed here. While I'm no stranger to the series, I am one to this fandom. Therefore, I would like to say that it is an honor to be here, and I hope that I can receive lots of constructive criticism from seasoned writers of the fandom to help me improve my writing skills even further. Thank you in advance, and I hope you will enjoy the prologue to my story. **

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Prologue: A Ghostly Encounter

It was already past midnight, and the moon was high above the tranquil Academy City of Bilgin in the Kalos region. It was the time when most students had already turned in for the night after a hard day of study and research.

Most of them.

In the currently empty streets of the campus, one young man was running as fast as his feet could move underneath the pale moonlight and in the midst of the chilly night air. His breathless pants could be heard echoing throughout the desolate streets, yet none were present to help lift whatever trouble he was running away from.

"Stop!" he rasped, voice coming out more like a whisper, evidence of his exhaustion. "I'm warning you!" he added, but once again, his voice lacked authority.

Only the eerie silence of the night answered his call, and yet, to his frightened mind, he felt there was something in the cold winds, taunting him with their bone-chilling gusts.

Quickly making a left into a dark alley in hope of losing whatever was after him, the young man then stopped for a while to catch a much-needed breather.

"That…" he panted as he muttered, wiping the numerous beads of sweats running down from his forehead, "That should be…far enough."

Leaning heavily against the stony wall of the lightless alley, the young man then dropped down. His feet were aching terribly after the overexertion they had been put through. The young man was, in short, utterly exhausted.

"I…" he muttered again, a smile on his pale face, "I made it…"

It was then that he felt something strange. The wind suddenly picked up, and the temperature – he could not tell if it was his mind playing trick on him or not – then dropped even further, sending an unusual sensation of chill running up and down his spine.

The man, in a feeble attempt to shield himself against the cold air, wrapped both arms around his body, adding as much warmth as he could offer to himself, a task that his plain tee shirt and jeans failed to at the moment.

"C-cold…" he breathed into his fists and rubbed his hands against one another. "I need to get back…"

"Tim…" came a sudden whisper in the air that made the young man's blood run cold and his entire body numb. He tried to convince himself it was just a trick of the mind, but then, he heard it again, the same disembodied voice calling out for him - one that sounded like it could only come from the darkest, deepest and most terrifying of nightmares that only one Pokemon alive would be capable of conjuring.

"What are you?" he yelled suddenly, trying to appear tough and salvage what was left of his dignity in this situation. "Show yourself, you coward!" he added before standing up and darting his eyes around at the empty alley.

"Timothy Foster…" said the voice once more, further driving the young man to a state of hysteria.

"What do you want from me? Who are you?" he yelled and backed away, frantically looking around to locate the source of the sound.

"Someone you know…rather well…" the voice replied.

"Curt? Bradley? Is that you?" Tim asked, voice shaky.

"I'm afraid mister Jenkins and mister Olson are unavailable at the moment, would you like to leave a message?" said the strange whisper once more, sarcastic and taunting.

"Whatever this is, it ain't funny. Show yourself!" Tim shouted more in hope of rousing someone nearby. His efforts, however, were all for naught.

"Oh, I already have…" the voice said again after a brief pause.

It was that exact moment that Tim could feel something behind him, something dark and sinister. He could feel a pair of eyes piercing straight into the back of his head, yet he refused to turn around, fearing that those eyes would be there the moment he did.

Unable to control his nerves any longer, the young man broke into a sprint and dashed out of the alley, making a beeline for the park, hoping that he could take a shortcut to the police station near the area and ending this nightmare.

"Ah…the boy wants to play tag…Alright then…I'm 'it'…" said the voice again, this time echoing inside Tim's eardrums, in the same teasing manner. The young man was now very frightened, not knowing what was happening anymore. The only thing he could do was will his body to run from whatever it was in the dark.

"I'll count to ten, then I'll come to catch you…1…2…3…4" Tim heard the voice again inside his head, and covered his ears.

"…5…6…7…" the count continued.

Tim continued running, fighting against his exhaustion.

"…8…9…" the count went on.

"Shut up! Get away from me, you freak!" Tim yelled.

"…10…Ready or not, here I come…"

By then, Tim had already reached the park, and the police station was only a few miles away. If he could just reach that place first, he could find help and maybe…

"…I see you…" said a sudden voice, which came from directly behind him. The whispered syllables made him flinch, and he swore he could feel a touch on his shoulder – a cold touch. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see that a pair of glowing red eyes staring at him from inside a trash can nearby.

He also swore he could see a malicious grin as well.

"Get away!" Tim shouted once more and swung his hand at whatever was behind him at the time, but his elbow only touched empty air.

There was nothing behind him.

"Tag. Now, you're 'it'," said that ghostly voice again, once again from behind his position. Tim whipped his head around, and this time, he saw it – a small individual clad in a dark-colored hoodie was standing underneath a street light, the hood completely obscuring their facial features except the haunting amber eyes glowing in the shadows.

From the distance, it was impossible to tell if the enigma was male or female.

"Your turn, Timmy," the individual grinned, showing teeth that greatly resembled those of a shark. "Catch me, if you can that is."

"W-What in the world are you?" Tim muttered, terrified.

"Me? Oh, nobody really. Just someone who's taking out the trash at night."

Tim, having run out of ideas, took out two pokeballs from his belt and held them forward.

"I'm warning you, man. If you don't stop this, I'll hurt you, for real," he threatened, but like before, fear completely took over his speech, and all that came out was a pathetic squeak.

"Hmm, you remind me of a cornered rat I once encountered a while ago…What was it called again? Oh yes, Curtis Jenkins…oh, the look in those eyes were priceless."

"Curt? What did you do to him, you creep?"

"Nothing too grand, actually, I just sang him one of my favorite lullabies and gently put him to sleep – a very, very long sleep. And now, it's your turn, Timmy" the enigma replied, his grin growing even wider – too wide to be humanly possible.

At that sight, Tim lost his composure and threw his pokeballs forward. From the objects, one Houndoom and one Honchkrow emerged, both roaring mightily in their master's defense.

"Hmm, fascinating…Alright, if you want, two can play at this game," the mysterious figure smirked and snapped his fingers.

A Dusknoir, as if on command, then emerged from behind a tree nearby. Though this one seemed a little different, for there was a dark and ominous aura surrounding its body.

"A ghost-type?" Tim asked, letting out a nervous laugh, "My pokemons are both dark-type, so this battle is as good as over!" he added, trying to convince himself more than talking to his opponent.

"Bravo, mister Foster, it appears that you know your textbooks well, and I must say I am greatly impressed by the fact that you even read. That being said, textbooks are simply theories, let's see if you can put that to practice, shall we?" the hooded figure taunted again.

Angered, Tim's face turned into a scowl and he shot a murderous glare.

"I'll make you regret ever messing with me, creep!" he yelled.

The battle began, and Tim made the first move.

"Let's finish this in one move, Houndoom, use Dark Pulse!"

Immediately, the hound unleashed a stream of pure dark energy directly at Dusknoir, but the owner of the ghost appeared unconcerned.

"Psychic – Earth Pillars!" he ordered, and Dusknoir obeyed.

Eye glowing, the ghost then unleashed its psychic power, not on the enemies or the incoming beam, but on the ground beneath. The earth shattered. Subsequently, six huge pillars emerged around the ghost, effectively shielding it from the attack.

Houndoom's Dark Pulse hit the pillars directly, and it was powerful enough to reduce all of them to rubbles. Unfortunately, its power was not enough to bypass the makeshift shield to reach the conjurer far behind.

"Is that all?" the ghost user taunted again, further aggravating Tim.

"Darn it! Honchkrow, use Night Slash!" he commanded, and the bird obeyed, its wings turning dark as it gathered the dark energy necessary to attack its foe.

The ghost user simply grinned.

All of the sudden, the shadow beneath Honchkrow started to move in an unusual manner, shocking Tim and his pokemons at the same time. Before they could make out what was happening, the shadow behind the bird seemed to come alive and rose up. The same pair of red eyes and that sinister grin appeared once more from the erected mob of darkness, right behind the dark bird.

"What the…" Tim gasped, shocked.

"Peekabo!" said the hooded figure slyly.

At a flick of the ghost user's fingers, the shadow then quickly took form, and from the blob of darkness, a Gengar appeared. Honchkrow, surprised by the sudden emergence of another opponent, wildly swung its wing. Sadly, Gengar was much faster, easily leaping forward and dodging the attack effortlessly.

"Dazzling Gleam!" said the enigma.

A burst of blinding light flared up, blinding Honchkrow and by extension, Houndoom and Tim as a result. A pained cry coming from the assaulted bird could be heard seconds later.

"What's happening?" Tim asked, covering both eyes at the sudden burst of light.

"Noir," he faintly heard the eerie voice of the ghost user far away, "Brick Break."

Seconds later, the pained cry of Houndoom was heard, just seconds before Gengar's attack disappeared.

When the light was no more, Tim saw, to his absolute horror, both of his pokemon had been defeated. Honchkrow was knocked out by the point-black Dazzling Gleam and Houndoom was incapacitated by Dusknoir's Brick Break when it was still momentarily blinded by the fairy light.

"Im…impossible…This cannot be…" Tim muttered as he looked at his fallen partners.

"Oh, I can assure you, this is very real!" said the enigma. However, he was not standing in front of Tim. No, this time, he was directly behind the poor man, grinning down on him with his sinister grin, his shark-like teeth and otherworldly amber eyes gleaming under the pale moonlight.

"But…how…" Tim asked incoherently, unable to stop the shaking of his body as he peered directly into the glowing orbs of his opponent. Those eyes seemed to paralyze him on the spot and instill a sense of fear like none he had ever experienced into his very soul with one single look.

"Simple really, a well-timed and perfectly executed Shadow Sneak from Noir before your Honchkrow could even perform its move, allowing my Gengar to approach your Honchkrow via the stretched shadow. Gengar then gave your crow a little light show, and boom, blackout. After that, Noir got close and chopped your doggy with a fighting maneuver, and voila."

"That's not…that's cheating…" Tim tried to protest.

"I can assure you, it was not," the shadowy figure grinned again. After all, I showed you my Gengar before the battle even began, remember?"

Even in his terror-filled mind, Tim could vaguely recall the pair of eyes in the alley and the similar eyes from inside the trash can.

"Well, that Dazzling Gleam truly lives up to its name, I must admit, and I'm sure the police will be here soon. Therefore, I must finish what I came for, fast…"

"What…What are you going to do to me?" Tim gulped, scooting back, but there was no escaping the ghost user.

"Like what I did to your friends, mister Foster…" the figure whispered in a low, menacing tone that could easily send chills to the core of one's being. The enigma then leaned further down and whispered in that same chilly tone into the terrified man's ear.

"Good night, mister Foster. I'll see you on the other side."

It was the last thing Tim heard before the ground underneath him disappeared, replaced by a strange portal.

The man's anguished scream could then be heard loud and clear, even from miles away. When Officer Jenny arrived only moments later, she only saw two passed out Houndoom and Honchkrow as well as a pair of running shoes on the scene.

"It's happened again…" she muttered, face turning into an indignant scowl, before calling for backup.

"Yes," she said into her phone, "we have another case…It seems that…the Nightwalker's appeared again…"

Unbeknownst to the officer, a hooded figure was perching on top of a tree nearby watching her every movement, an inhumanly wide and sinister grin along with a pair of glowing amber orbs gleaming ominously against the shadows of the night.

...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1: The City of Scholars

It was an absolutely beautiful day in the Kalos region. The sun was shining brightly, and the air was warm - a perfect day for a picnic.

Ash and his friends were currently taking a short break underneath the shades to save up their energy before continuing their journey towards the next city. At the moment, everyone, along with their beloved Pokemon partners, was enjoying their lunch in the middle of wild, untamed and breathtaking nature.

"Brother, this is delicious," exclaimed Bonnie as she gulped down the soup her older sibling had prepared. The declaration was further reinforced by a happy sound of agreement coming from her Dedenne, its tail waggling around merrily as it gluttonously devoured its provided portion. "It seems like your cooking has gotten even better the longer we travel," Bonnie added cheerfully, shoving another spoonful of soup in her mouth as she spoke.

"Bonnie, please mind your manners and don't talk so loudly while eating, and thank you for the compliment," replied Clemont softly but sternly before he happily went back to serving the others, "And remember to eat your vegetables."

At that, the little girl groaned miserably and pouted, but still reluctantly complied. After checking and making sure that she would eat, Clemont nodded and went back to preparing the soup for Ash and Serena. After a few seconds had passed, Bonnie, secretly stealing a few glances at his brother's back from where she was sitting, deemed that it was safe to make her move. With practiced stealth, the girl swiftly took out the carrots and placed them in Dedenne's plate.

Or at least, she attempted to.

"Vegetables also include carrots, Bonnie!" said Clemont again without so much as turning around, his voice even sterner than earlier.

Flinching, Bonnie then let out a sigh and muttered a pouty "Fine!" before proceeding to put the carrots in her mouth, cringing throughout the entire ordeal.

Their little sibling antics caused the other two members of the group, Ash and Serena, to laugh, with the latter being more discreet and polite with one hand over her mouth. Needless to say, little Bonnie was embarrassed.

"You should listen to your brother, Bonnie," said Serena with a smile, "After all, he only wants what's best for his sister."

"Yeah, you're lucky to have him as a sibling," Ash and Pikachu agreed before the former greedily started gulping down his own food. His comment only made the electric-type genius to blush madly, obviously bashful when it came to sudden compliments of any kind.

"A-Anyway, let's eat up and continue on before it gets dark," said Clemont as he, too, began to eat as well.

"Yes," said Serena, "The next city is close, and if we hurry after this, there's a chance we can get there before the sun goes down."

"And what city is that?" asked Ash, already moving on to his second helping.

"Speaking of which, the next city should be…hmm, if memories serve me right, it's the Academy City of Bilgin," Serena said. Immediately, the boy genius sitting next to her quickly stood up, almost knocking over his plate and surprising everyone as a result.

"Really?" exclaimed Clemont with unconcealed excitement radiating from his eyes. "Bilgin? I've been wanting to visit this place since I was a kid!" He then went on mumbling about things, which to the others, save Bonnie, sounded like a jumbled mess of incoherent utterances about science and related stuff.

"Okay?" asked Ash and Serena, unsure how to react to the suddenly high-strung genius, as they turned to the currently sane sibling for an explanation. Noticing their questioning stares, Bonnie sighed and began to explain.

"The Academy City of Bilgin, as the name implies, is a huge campus that is practically a city where students from many regions gather to learn more about pokemon. It has a lot of levels from middle schools to universities, and it is extremely famous as the place that produces top-grade researchers and scholars. There are also trainer courses, but they are not as well known. Simply put, it's like a bookworm paradise, one that's perfect for my bro over there," she pointed at her brother, who seemed completely oblivious to his surroundings as he went on talking to himself.

Unbeknownst to the young boy, his Chespin and Bunnelby had, at some point, backed away slowly and distanced themselves from their gung-ho trainer. Only his Luxray remained stationary, but both Pikachu and Dedenne nearby could easily catch wind of a quiet sigh coming out of the Gleam Eyes Pokemon.

"Should we do something about that?" Ash asked, pointing a finger at the Gym Leader. Bonnie, however, appeared unconcerned, "Don't worry, he'll return to normal soon enough when he's all geeked out. Well, as normal as can be, that is," she said with a smile and went back to her food, taking advantage of the situation to secretly feed the remaining carrots to Ash's Hawlucha.

Shrugging, both Ash and Serena went back to minding their own business, and true to Bonnie's words, the normal Clemont returned shortly afterwards with a tired look on his face, causing everyone to laugh aloud heartily.

The group then finished their meal and got ready to resume their journey.

…

The trip to the city was rather uneventful, with very little complications on their path except for some encounters with some hostile wild Pokemon, all of which were easily settled. Later that day, the group finally arrived at their destination, and just as Serena had predicted earlier, it was already sunset when the group of friends was at the entrance.

"So this is the Academy City, huh?" Ask whistled and looked at the grand buildings faraway from where he was, silently taking in and admiring the ancient yet sturdy-looking campus and the single great clock tower situated in the center of the city.

Everything about this place seemed to exude a sense of tranquility, elegance and, above all, professionalism, and as they travelled around in search of a place to rest, they caught sight of many old bookstores, restaurants and cafes of varying sizes that littered around the city block. Furthermore, along the sidewalks, there were impressive lines of cherry blossoms on either side, showing off their natural beauty to the few beholders that were walking by.

When the group first laid eyes on the breath-taking cherry blossom street in the last moments of daylight, they could not hold back the gasps of admiration at the scenic, almost divine, sight of natural beauty.

"According to what I read, this place also has its own shopping district and lots of tourist attractions scattered around like the Central Park, the Eternal Clocktower and many more," Serena said as she looked at her Pokegear, barely able to contain her own excitement at the sight before her.

Buildings after buildings were spotted as they continued to navigate through the almost empty street, all of them built specifically to accommodate the needs and wants of the students of the grand campus.

"This place is amazing!" Ash whistled in appreciation as he looked around.

"You said it, Ash," agreed Clemont, thrilled, "It's exactly what I imagined it to be. There are so many places to see, so many bookstores to visit, oh my, are those specialist drill bits? I can probably make something from those!" he squealed and almost ran off if Serena and Bonnie had not been quick enough to hold him back by his backpack.

"Easy there bro" Bonnie chided, "First, we look for a place to sleep, and tomorrow, you can go mad scientist all you want."

"Bonnie's got a point, Clemont. It's getting late," Serena chimed in, stifling a giggle. Reluctantly, the restrained boy complied with a sulking expression.

Ash laughed along with his friends and partner, but then, he began to notice, out of the corner of his eye, that something was strange. The few people that were walking around seemed to pick up their speed and began to walk very quickly. Even the shopkeepers and café owners closed their doors and windows tightly even though it was not that late yet.

"Hmm, strange! You would think that a city of scholars would be more lively at night, right?" Ash said, patting Pikachu gently on his head.

"Pika" replied the electric mouse, looking as bewildered as his trainer.

"Oh well, first things first, let's find a place t crash, and tomorrow, we will take a tour around," he exclaimed, and the others immediately voiced their agreement with the plan.

To their surprise, most inns they visited were already closed, and the people inside insistently refused to open their doors even when they knocked, much to everyone's bewilderment. Their predicament continued to last for the next half an hour until Ash decided they had had enough and said it would be best to locate a Pokemon Center to stay the night.

Seeing that it was the best option available to them at the moment, everyone agreed without much thought.

"There should be one near the Central Park" Serena said, looking at the map before, she felt a sudden chillness in the air, causing her to shiver and pull closer to Ash.

"Is it me, or is it suddenly getting colder around here?" she questioned, wrapping her arms around herself from warmth.

"It's just the evening air," was the trainer's reply, and the matter was left at that. "Let's go!"

The group then made their way for the Center, and along the way, Ash vaguely registered the fact that the air had become unnaturally chilly, like the temperature has dropped drastically over the last few minutes.

"Man, is it supposed to be this cold at night around here?" he asked Pikachu, who simply elicited a small squeak of agreement, his small frame shivering slightly. "Okay, pal, let's go to the Center quickly, then you'll have a nice blanket wrapped around you, and we can..."

It was that exact moment that Ash suddenly felt a tingling sensation that something was nearby. It was a very familiar sensation, but it was one that he had not felt for quite some time now – the presence of an aura within the vicinity, and this one was exceptionally strong.

And also unimaginably dark.

It took Ash a while to realize that it was coming from right behind him, and in that split second, Ash also felt another pair of eyes on the back of his head, sending all of his hair to stand up in alert.

He could have sworn he heard a faint murmur in the wind as well.

Swiftly turning around with a surprised gasp, Ash then darted his eyes around the empty area to locate the source of the foreign sensation, but he was only met with the bewildered gazes and questioning looks of his companions, including one from Pikachu on his shoulder.

"What's wrong?" Serena asked after a while, looking at him with concerned eyes, and he could also see the same sentiments from Bonnie and Clemont.

Ash took another quick look around, but that feeling was gone, as fast and sudden as it had emerged in the first place. Thus, with a slight shake of his head, the young trainer scratched the back of his head sheepishly and reassured that everything was fine.

"Nothing," he said, "I thought I heard something, but it must have been my imagination, nothing to worry about, hehe…"

"Are you feeling alright, Ash?" Clemont asked again, unsure about his friend's statement.

"I'm sure, now let's go!" Ash replied before turning around and running towards the direction of the Pokemon Center, causing the others to pick up the pace as well.

While running, he could not help but mull over what the strange aura he had felt, even if its presence had only been felt for a brief second.

"What was that aura? And that presence..." he muttered to himself. Pikachu, still sitting on his shoulder, shot his partner another worried glance and frowned slightly at the pensive and grim expression that had taken over the boy's features. Unbeknownst to Ash, the mouse had managed to pick up what he had said, but opted to keep quiet for the time being.

And for the rest of the trip, not another word was uttered. Ash also tried to push the aura to the back of his mind as he raced toward the Center.

However, what Ash did not know was that there was a lone silhouette perching on top of the roof of the magnificent Eternal Clocktower in the middle of the city, a pair amber eyes vigilantly keeping watch over the new boy and his friends from the eerie veil of shadows.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 2: The Mysterious Auras

"There's the Pokemon Center. I can see it from here!" Bonnie exclaimed as she and the others were running through the Central Park, glad to learn that they had at last arrived at their destination.

To everyone's joy, the lights of the Center were on, and against the generally dark and somewhat morbid atmosphere that enveloped the city, the building greatly resembled a beacon that offered some form of relief to the travelers.

After all, the city was, at the moment, mostly shrouded in a veil of foreboding and gloomy shadows, and there were very few sources of lights around except for the streetlights lining on either side of the road.

"Finally!" Ash said vociferously and with a huge smile, and his sentiment was obviously shared by his electric partner through a joyous cry of exclamation of his own. The group picked up the pace and ran faster.

It was then that Serena caught something in her peripheral vision, causing her to look toward that direction out of pure curiosity.

"Hang on," said Serena, "What's that?" she added after a while, effectively capturing and directing the attention of her friends toward the sight that had caught her eyes. It was a large and empty area in the park. Everyone halted immediately and looked at the strange area, around which various police lines were set up to prevent unauthorized entry.

"Bonnie, stay back!" Clemont quickly guided Bonnie behind him as his brotherly instincts kicked in, "What happened here?" he then voiced his question aloud to his other friends as they looked at the area inside the yellow lines.

The soil was shattered and disturbed, and there were also chalk outlines of two shapes, which hardly resembled the shapes of humans. However, the most curious items inside, as the group spotted, were probably the discarded pair of running shoes next to the outlines.

"Oh my gosh, what happened here?" Serena spoke quietly under her breath, one shaky hand covering her mouth to keep her from crying aloud, as the girl took a few steps backward. It was obvious that her young mind was not accustomed to the idea of chancing upon a scene of a police investigation, much less actually seeing one in real life. Needless to say, the young girl was frightened, a fact made visible by the slight trembling of her slender frame.

A few seconds later, however, she suddenly felt a firm hand placed on her shoulder, the grip of that hand firm and comforting. She quickly turned her head around and saw Ash smiling at her softly, his face still retaining its genial and spirited expression.

"Hey, Serena," said Ash in a low voice to avoid spooking the sensitive girl, "It's okay. It's okay. Now, why don't we just look away, leave this place and head to the Center and sleep away the night, sounds good?" he added, tightening his fingers around her shoulder slightly if only to keep her grounded.

With a shaky nod and a relived sigh, Serena agreed.

Nearby, she also saw that Clemont was also doing the same thing with his little sister, gently patting her head and uttering soothing words of comfort to the young child.

"Let's go!" Ash spoke up once again, and the group got ready to leave the crime scene and went back to their original objective. "Before anyone sees us here and…"

"Hey! What are you four doing?"

"Misunderstands the situation…" Ash finished lamely.

At the sound of the new and angry tone, everyone turned to look at the newly arrived character. They turned around only to come face-to-face with a very angry and worried looking Officer Jenny and her Pokemon partner, Arcanine. The two law enforcers glared at the lone group of kids, all of whom gulped at the intensity that came out of police officer's gaze.

And as to be expected, Ash and his friends were clueless as to why the officer was mad at them.

Before they could vocalize their bewilderment, however, Officer Jenny spoke up again, using a stern and commanding tone.

"It's already past curfew already, so you four should be home! It's not safe out here! Didn't you watch the news? With all the disappearances happening around the city lately, nobody should be allowed to wander the streets after sunset without proper authority or supervision."

"Excuse me, ma'am…" Ash spoke, but was promptly ignored.

"What are your parents' numbers and addresses?" the woman demanded, "I'm taking you home this instant before anything bad happens!" toward the end, her voice became noticeably harsher and harsher, much to the kids' dismay and, in Bonnie's case, terror.

"There seems to be some sort of misunderstanding here, ma'am…We are just…" Ash tried again, both hands raised in an attempt to placate the vexed officer. His effort was, once again, unsuccessful.

"No excuse, young man," Officer Jenny spoke over the young trainer and pulled out her notepad. "Now, tell me your parents' numbers and I'll ensure you get picked up safely."

"But we're not from around here," said Serena at last, and the adult stopped to study the group closely for the first time.

"That's right, we've just arrived in the city, and we're currently looking for a place to rest for the night. And please stop yelling, you're scaring my sister," this time Clemont spoke up, feeling a bit annoyed by the unreasonableness and stubbornness of the law enforcer.

It was only then that the policewoman finally took notice of the young blonde girl standing behind the bespectacled boy, tiny fists shakily clutching her older sibling's leg. Her eyes were moist.

"You…You're new around here?" Officer Jenny asked after a brief moment of silence, having calmed down considerably at the sight of a civilian's upset.

"Yes, ma'am," replied Ash, relieved. "We're heading to the Pokemon Center right now to ask for shelter for the night since the inns around the city are clearly closed for the day."

"Pika!" Pikachu, too, voice his own agreement with a nod of finality directed at the canine Pokemon.

"…I see. In that case, I apologize for my rudeness," the policewoman relented at last, but still retained her serious expression and rigid posture. "But that does not change the fact that you four shouldn't be wandering around a scene of an ongoing investigation at a time like this. I suggest you get going right now. The Center is not far away from here. Go straight there and do not, under any circumstances, stray from the path. Are we clear?" she asked, but what came out was obviously a command that easily silenced any and all potential protests.

"Yes, ma'am" Ash answered nervously, "We were just about to leave any…" his sentence was suddenly cut short when he that intense sensation from earlier arose once again, as sudden and unbidden as the previous one had been.

The trainer's eyes were then wide with surprise as he picked up the same ominous presence once more, only this time, it was not anywhere near the group. Rather, the ominous aura was coming from the direction of the Cherry Path, where they had earlier passed not so long ago to reach the park.

In addition to the strong, malicious aura, there were also other weaker auras as well, but he could not tell exactly how many in total due to them being mostly dominated by the former. That being said, he could clearly sense that two of the weaker auras were quickly and steadily fading away as the seconds passed.

Someone was obviously hurting.

"What?" Ash muttered to himself as he came to his senses and quickly turned his gaze toward the direction from whence he had sensed the presence. "That aura again?" he added under his breath, which was only audible to his at the moment worry-stricken Pikachu.

All of the sudden, much to Officer Jenny and the others' surprise and shock, the young trainer swiftly broke away from the group and began to make a beeline toward the Cherry Path, aiming to help whoever was in need of assistance and at the same time hoping to get to the bottom of the strange sensations he kept picking up.

Apparently, this aura, whoever it belonged to, was potent enough to catch his attention twice, despite his obvious lack of mastery over his innate own aura abilities.

"_Twice in one day?"_ Ash thought, his face turning unusually grim and serious, _"This can't be a coincidence or my imagination. Something is out there, and I'm going to get to the bottom of this!"_

The boy continued running, oblivious to the indignant shouts of the policewoman mixed with the concerned ones coming from his friends behind. In fact, in his haste, Ash even failed to acknowledge Pikachu's cry as well, consequently causing the concern of the latter to grow.

"What's gotten into him all of the sudden?" Serena asked Clemont and Bonnie, her initial surprise fading and making way for newly bred worry as she watched her companion's frame disappear into the shadows ahead only moments later.

"Why, that boy!" Officer Jenny spoke through gritted teeth, "The nerves of him. Arcanine, after him!" she said to her partner before mounting the large Pokemon.

"You three, head to the Pokemon Center and stay there!" she said to the remaining kids before heading off towards the same direction the wayward trainer had suddenly disappeared to.

A brief moment of silence ensued as Clemont, Bonnie and Serena silently debated what to do. Exchanging silent looks for a few seconds, they then turned serious and simultaneously nodded their heads in silent consensus.

"Luxray, I need your assistance!" Clemont said as he called out his trusty Pokemon, which roared in readiness the moment it emerged from its container.

"Serena, you take Bonnie to the Center, I'll bring Ash back, safe and sound," spoke the bespectacled boy, his entire being now exuding the powerful and determined fighting spirit befitting of a Gym Leader.

"Okay, be safe!" the older girl said with a nod and took Bonnie in her arm.

"Please come back, brother," spoke the little girl as she hugged her Dedenne more tightly. Clemont offered them a small reassuring smile before climbing on Luxray's back and following Ash.

Both Bonnie and Serena did not leave their spots as they watched Clemont ride off into the distance, and it was not until the sight of the Gym Leader was completely swallowed by the darkness of the night did the two girls finally make their way for the Pokemon Center.

…

Back to Ash and Pikachu, the boy was currently running as fast as his legs could move. High above, his Fletchinder was, at the same time, carefully scouting from the air to find out anything out of the ordinary.

"How is it up there, Fletchinder?" Ash shouted to his flying Pokemon, only to receive a negative shake. However, only a few seconds afterward, the fire bird narrowed its eyes and looked closely at something in the distance. Eyes widened in realization, Fletchinder then sped up using Flame Charge, effectively leaving a trail of smokes behind for the grounded trainer to follow.

"I knew something was wrong," Ash muttered briefly before he heard a concerned whine from Pikachu, urging him to turn his head and face his best friend.

"Don't worry, Pikachu," the trainer reassured with his usual confident smile, "It's just that I can't shake off the feeling that something's not right. It's been a while since I last sensed other people's auras, so this must mean something. I don't know it yet, but I intend on finding out."

"Piii…" whined the electric mouse as he hesitantly settled back on the boy's shoulder. His concerned expression remained fixed on his face. He was worried, and who could really blame him.

Ash was, from his various experiences and journeys spent with the boy, a gigantic walking magnet for troubles, some of which were minor, some of which were unbidden, many of which were downright bizarre, while others were definitely deadly – literally. In fact, in this case, Pikachu was trying hard to fight against the rising urge to shock his friend into unconsciousness to prevent him from getting himself hurt – again.

However, the mouse, at the sight of Ash's determined expression, saw no point in trying to convince the stubborn boy to stop whatever he was trying to do. Thus, the only thing Pikachu could do at that moment was to follow along and help his trainer in any way he could – like he always did and always would.

"Alright, we're almost there,…just a few more blocks and…"

"Stop!" shouted a familiar angry voice from behind the duo, causing them to turn around. He then spotted Officer Jenny and her Arcanine again, both of whom were approaching at a very fast pace.

And it did not take long until the policewoman eventually did.

"What do you think you are doing, young man?" Officer Jenny chided as she glared down at the still running boy. "I told you not to wander off, and you did just that! What were you thinking? Didn't I tell you that it's dangerous around here at night?"

"I know," Ash protested, not once slowing down, "But someone's hurt, and probably in need of assistance."

"Nice try, kid! You are coming back with me right now! It's for your own safety."

"Look, I know someone is hurt. Believe it or not, I can sense auras and I definitely SENSED it. The auras don't lie!" Ash retorted earnestly, looking up at the woman and staring directly into her eyes. That gesture seemed to shock the policewoman into stunned silence, and she could only stare back.

Neither human spoke for a while as a brief interval of silence took reign. That silence was only shattered when they heard the sounds of another approaching set of footsteps, this time coming from Clemont's Luxray a little distance behind.

"Ash!" the Gym Leader yelled after his friend the moment he caught up. Before he could say anything else, however, the young trainer shot him a thankful smirk and jumped on Luxray's back in one smooth motion. He spoke in an unnaturally serious tone in the face of the bewildered blonde.

"Good timing, Clemont!" he began without even turning back, "But no time to talk, Luxray, can you follow the smoke trail left behind by Fletchinder? He spotted something, and we need to get there, fast."

Luxray cast Ash a sideway glance before complying, picking up the pace and even passing Arcanine.

"What's happening, Ash? Why are you suddenly acting so strange like this?" asked Clemont, tightly hanging onto his friend for dear life.

"I sensed that someone's hurt!" was what Clemont got in response, "And whoever is hurting them is also in the area. We can catch them if we're fast enough."

After that, neither Clemont nor Officer Jenny uttered another word. They only sat back and let Ash lead the way, for something was telling them that the young trainer was, somehow, telling the truth through the sincere and earnest tone he had been using.

A while later, the group finally arrived at the Cherry Path.

Then, the humans, except for Ash, could only widen their eyes in shock as what was taking place right in front of them.

There, a small-framed figure dressed in a dark-colored hoodie, the person's face mostly obscured by the drawn up hood, was battling against Ash's Fletchinder with a Dusknoir. Behind the battle, a terrified and cowering young man as well a passed out Stoutland could be seen, comfirming Ash's claim.

"No way…" muttered Clemont and Officer Jenny simultaneously as they briefly glanced at the boy. Ash, on the other hand, only had his eyes on the hooded individual, from whom the dark and sinister aura was wildly oozing out.

...


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 3: Oh my Ghosts!

Ash stared at the shady hooded character before him, from whom the aura was exceptionally strong, both curiously and warily.

"The aura…It's coming from that guy," Ash muttered to himself as he looked at the enigmatic trainer of the Dusknoir nearby, who seemed to be genuinely surprised to see that there were other people still around at this time of the day. That original surprise then turned to irritation, evident by a frown and a click of the tongue, as the figure caught sight of Officer Jenny.

"How?" said the figure in a voice that sounded strangely distorted, making it virtually impossible to determine the gender of the speaker.

"I don't believe this," said Officer Jenny, her eyes wide and mouth hanging as she took in the sight before her. "A shadowy figure with amber eyes and shark-like teeth, using ghost-type Pokemon…You're the Nightwalker, aren't you?" she continued, her initial shock fading and giving way to an angry scowl, as she shot a glare at the hooded figure, who simply turned around but otherwise said nothing in return.

A nonchalant shrug served as the answer to the policewoman's question.

"Doesn't matter," Officer Jenny spoke up again after a while before she dismounted her Arcanine, "It's clear that you know something about what happened to that man over there, so I want you to come with me. Now!"

"Ooh, feisty!" the hooded person replied at last, voice filled to the brim with sarcasm and humor, "Flattered as I am and as much as I'd love to hang out with you, I'm kinda, you know, _engaged_ at the moment. So, sorry!" a faint chuckle was then heard.

The figure then recalled Dusknoir back to his side and swiftly ran away, ignoring the injured man and his Pokemon to lie on the dirty ground.

Reacting swiftly with trained reflexes obviously honed from years' worth of experience, Officer Jenny immediately got on Arcanine's back once more and chased after the retreating target, but not after calling for an ambulance and backup to come and pick up the injured trainer.

"You two, get to the Pokemon Center. That's an order!" she said to Ash and Clemont briefly before she took off.

The boys looked at each other for a while before nodding in silent agreement. Clemont then took out his Pokeball and called out his Bunnelby.

"Fletchinder," Ash said, turning to his faithful bird hovering in front of the defeated and injured trainer, "Keep them safe until help arrives."

"You as well, Bunnelby," ordered the Gym Leader. "We'll be back later."

Both Pokemon nodded, acknowledging their assigned mission. Satisfied, the two boys then took off after the suspect on Luxray's back.

…

Back to Officer Jenny, she continued to relentlessly hunt down the hooded enigma, who was moving at an unusually fast speed despite the small, almost fragile-looking frame. Furthermore, what was strange, in the woman's opinion, was the fact that the suspect was not even running, but more like he was floating.

"You're very darn persistent, I'll give you that, lady!" the enigma spoke up and shot his chaser another conceited grin, looking amused and entertained at the entire ordeal. "But not that I'm complaining. After all, it's been a while since I had such an, let's see, ah, exhilarating game of tag. The last player was b-o-r-i-n-g, boring! He nearly wetted his pants when I grabbed him. Shame on him, really!"

Officer Jenny, on the other, was anything but amused.

"If you won't stop, then I have no other choice. Arcanine, use flamethrower and cut him off!" Officer Jenny commanded. Instantly, Arcanine released a stream of searing flames forward, barely missing the suspect and the ghost. The fire then hit the ground a little bit further ahead and set the entire area on fire, effectively cutting off the hooded figure's escape.

Letting out a whistle, the ghost user stopped running and narrowly avoided heading straight into the wall of flames. With an exaggerated slouch, he then let out a whine and turned around to greet the officer and her partner, the mischievous grin never once faltering. "Wow, I'm honored, miss. It seems you've really got the _hot_ for me."

"Arcanine!" the policewoman ordered sternly, ignoring the suspect's taunt, and immediately, her partner moved forward, growing menacingly at the suspect. "I'll give you one more chance. We can settle this matter peacefully, or I'll have my partner here subdue you and drag back to the office myself, in cuffs."

"My, what an aggressive woman you are. I like that. Unfortunately, I'm not actually the _submissive_ type, nor am I particularly into any type of acts that involve the use of _physical_ _restraints_, thank you very much," the shady figure spoke again, voice still filled with the same dark, twisted sense of humor and a generous helping of sarcasm, which only served to cause the grown woman to grow angrier at each syllable uttered.

"I'll say this one more time. This is your final chance. Surrender and stand down. You're coming back to the station with me for further questioning, now!" Office Jenny ordered again in hope of ending this chase in a non-violent manner, but her voice was harsh and commanding. Unfortunately, that voice was not effective against the target, who seemed rather bored based on their posture.

"Sorry to refuse your invite, again, but I'm kinda booked for the night, but if you really want me to _accompany_ you, here, you can have my _substitute_ here," said the hooded individual again in the same taunting and calculating tone as he pulled out a Pokemon doll, a Banette to be specific, from inside the pocket of his hoodie and tossed it at the policewoman. "Some people say we're like twins, actually. Isn't he just charming?" he jested, his grin growing inhumanly wide as he spoke.

Officer Jenny, having gotten fed up by the defiant attitude of the suspect and having been forced to resort to relying on her partner to arrest the suspect, angrily grabbed the lightweight doll, put it in one of her evidence bags and placed the container around her waist for forensic investigation later. The woman then commanded her Arcanine to step forward and take its battle stance.

"Since you clearly have no intention of coming peacefully, I'm left with no choice! You are under arrest for resisting arrest. Arcanine, use Flamethrower!"

The dog obeyed, once again unleashing a stream of merciless flames at the ghost user, who appeared unconcerned still despite being cornered by the police officer.

However, before the attack could reach the figure's position, his Dusknoir quckly used its Psychic technique to raise a large chunk of the ground and use it as a makeshift shield against the flames.

"Wow! So strength, many heat, much temperature, wow!" spoke the hooded individual in a sing-song tone, his head poking out from behind the earth wall to taunt the already impatient officer even more. "Good thing we managed to '_doged_' that bullet, huh, Noir. Ooh, I almost forgot. Here's a little lesson for you, miss policewoman. Ahem, flames cast shadows on the walls and ground, and where there are shadows…"

At that exact moment, a pair of crimson glowing eyes along with a malicious grin appeared directly underneath Arcanine, much to its shock.

"…There are perfect campsites for Gengar!" said the ghost user with another gleeful grin.

On command, one immediately emerged from its hiding spot and, before Arcanine could even find the time to react, launched a point-blank Shadow Ball at the dog. The resulted explosion blew both Arcanine and Officer Jenny away.

"Kabouie!" said the ghost user with a bout of hysteric laughter.

Luckily, Officer Jenny did not sustain any major damage except for a few scorch marks and a few shallow cuts from the pebbles. Arcanine, on the other hand, whimpered in pain as it struggled to get back on its feet from the sudden assault.

"Game over, miss!" the figure said condescendingly, "Noir, Shadow Sneak!"

His Dusknoir quickly executed the move as commanded, extending its own shadow toward the injured Arcanine. The stretched shadow then went around and subsequently behind the dog before assuming the appearance of a shadowy Dusknoir. The animated shadow raised its fist and threw it at the helpless target.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" shouted Ash, and a split second later, a cackling line of electricity was released by his faithful partner, flying right between the shadow Dusknoir and the stunned Arcanine and effectively sparing the latter another direct and painful hit.

Failed, the stretched shadow dissipated and returned to the real Dusknoir on the other side of the battlefield.

"Miss Jenny, are you okay?" asked Clemont as he and Ash arrived at last, much to the woman's surprise.

"I thought I told you to get back to the Center!" she quickly reprimanded the two boys, angry at their defiance, yet again.

"Look, we're sorry to go against your order, but I can sense that there's something strange about that guy over there," said Ash, "And we figured that you might need all the help you can get. After all, two Pokemon against one isn't exactly fair."

Officer Jenny's frown deepened momentarily before her expression softened considerably. She then deflated, feeling her anger at the young trainers fade away and pave the way for relief and gratitude at their timely assistance. Though she was still annoyed and worried that two innocent civilians had gotten involved in this battle, she could not help but accept the truth that she was the one facing a disadvantage in this situation.

"…I am thankful for your concern," she replied at last, looking at the two determined trainers straight in the eye as she spoke. "Alright, you can stay, but please stay close to me. I would never be able to forgive myself if something bad were to happen to innocent people on my watch."

"Don't worry, ma'am. We are perfectly capable of handling our own," Ash said with finality, and Clemont nodded in consensus as the two dismounted Luxray. "But now, let's get back to the matter at hand. Who are you?" asked Ash, jabbing a finger at the hooded figure, who seemed rather surprised that the young boy had shown up yet again.

However, like earlier, the dumbfounded expression on the enigma's face did not last long.

"How rude," the ghost user mocked in a condescending tone, "demanding my name without offering your own first. What poor manners, I say," a sigh was heard at this point, "But I suppose it's alright to give you my name, since you lot will either be in a coma or, at the very least, develop amnesia by the time I'm done with this battle, so what the heck," he paused for dramatic effect before resuming his monologue, "I have many names, but the people of this town generally know me as the Nightwalker – not exactly original or cool in my opinion, but whatever. After all, I'm not the type of person to turn down a free gift from my adoring fans."

"Nightwalker?" asked Ash and Clemont.

"So it is you," Officer Jenny spoke up, glaring at the ghost user, "You're the one responsible for all of the disappearances around the city, and you were about to commit the same heinous act when we found you."

"Hey now, I've just been doing this city a favor, and doing a pretty darn good job if I do say so myself," the Nightwalker, unfazed by the intensity of Jenny's tone, replied rather smugly, and his grin momentarily was replaced by a mock rueful scowl before he reverted back to the initial calm posture and demeanor. "This place is filled with lots and lots of trash and filth, so, I figured that someone needed to take up the dirty job and clean up. And by someone, I mean yours truly, _moi, _your humble and charge-free nightly garbage collector and disposer."

"Either way, you are under arrest for kidnappings, assaults and various other crimes!" said Officer Jenny, calling her Arcanine to her side once more. "Arcanine, use Flame Charge!"

The dog, with a mighty battle roar, obeyed and executed the move, coating its entire body in blazing flames and promptly charging at Dusknoir at a breakneck speed. Unable to react quickly enough to Arcanine's speed, Dusknoir was hit directly in the chest with a resounding impact. However, the ghost still persisted, holding its ground against the opponent with some difficulty.

"Brick Break," said the Nightwalker coolly.

Acknowledging the command, Dusknoir raised both hands up and hammered down with tremendous amount of strength. Fortunately, the dog was easily able to take advantage of its boost in speed to dodge in the nick of time.

"Aw shucks! Gengar, Shadow Ball, go!"

The elusive ghost emerged again from the shadow belonging to a cherry tree nearby, having hidden there since its last attack, and shot a barrage of dark energy orbs at Arcanine. Swiftly, the dog jumped backward continuously in zic-zac motions, trying its best to evade the incoming projectiles.

"Alright, we're not going to stand here and do nothing. Let's help Arcanine out, Pikachu, use Iron Tail on the ground and knock the pebbles towards those Shadow Balls!" Ash decided that it was time for an intervention, and he did just that. Pikachu let out a noise of acknowledgement before following his directives.

His intervention paid off, and Arcanine was saved from the rain of dark energy balls, much to Officer Jenny's relief. Muttering a quick "Thanks" to the young trainer, the policewoman then ordered her partner to move back and keep a distance away from the highly unpredictable ghosts.

Hearing a snap of the fingers from the ghost user, Gengar let out a sinister laugh and assimilated with the shadows once more, disappearing from sight to await further orders.

"Hmm, not bad," the Nightwalker remarked, studying Pikachu with a hint of interest. "For a rodent, that is. Alright, time for me to flip the script and change the game plan a bit."

Before anyone could say anything about the sudden declaration, the Nightwalker stomped one foot on the ground twice. Suddenly, the night sky was lit up with the sudden appearances of numerous bluish-white flames hovering in the air, much to everyone's shock.

"What the?" asked Ash as he looked at the ghostly fires surrounding Pikachu and himself.

"Yes, I know. They are such adorable and pretty little things, but don't be distracted, boy" the voice of the Nightwalker pulled Ash back to reality, and the moment he turned around to look at the ghost user, he was met with the sight of Dusknoir using its Psychic to manipulate the flames around the area.

"Let's dance!" the Nightwalker spoke up with a mock bow, grinning more maliciously as he spoke. Dusknoir, heeding its user's order, manually controlled the flames and sent them flying toward Pikachu and Ash at top speed.

"Oh no, you don't, Arcanine, shield them with your body!" Officer Jenny commanded.

Unfortunately, before Arcanine could jump in, Gengar reemerged once again from its dark sanctuary and intercepted the dog's advance.

"Toxic!" ordered the Nightwalker, and Gengar immediately hurled a dark-colored stream of poisonous substance at the dog, leaving it badly poisoned as a result and, as a side effect, causing Arcacnine to roar out in pain as the toxin hit its face directly.

"Arcanine!" the policewoman shouted in concern as she watched her partner crouch down and whined in agony as a jab of intense pain stabbed its body when the poison took effect.

Gengar quickly seized the opportunity and escaped into the shadows again, waiting for another chance to strike and leaving Arcanine as well as Jenny to look anxiously around in confusion and anticipation. The ghost would pop up and disappear again every few seconds in between to further confuse its victims. No matter how many Flamethrowers Arcanine shot, the ghost would always be unharmed within the its sanctuary of darkness.

Back to Ash and Pikachu, the electric mouse was not faring any better. In fact, due to the manipulation of Dusknoir, the will-o-wisps were much more difficult to avoid, as they moved in completely random and complex patterns. Pikachu was trapped, surrounded by a plethora of ghostly flames that could burn him from any direction. And no matter how hard or how fast the mouse moved, there would always be more wisps to intercept and cut off his escape attempts.

However, the curious thing was, as Clemont noticed from the background, was that when Pikachu managed to cancel out a few wisps, different ones appeared to take their place, thus creating a cage from which Pikachu could not escape.

"Pikachu, use Electro Ball to counter those flames!" Ash ordered as he and the other humans, too, struggled to stay away from the merciless wisps. Pikachu followed his trainer's command, and unleashed an energy orb of his own against a small group of ghostly fires ahead, reducing them to nothingness in a matter of seconds.

Unfortunately, there was no time to celebrate as more flames suddenly appeared out of nowhere, forcing Pikachu back to go back to the defensive once more.

"Pikachu, behind you!" Ash yelled at his Pokemon, but it was already too late. The tiny flame hit Pikachu's body, painfully burning the mouse and forcing him to let out cries of agony as the burn took effect. Nearby, Ash could only call his partner's name in anger and helplessness as he listened to the mouse's pained cries.

"Give it up, boy. No matter what you do, you can't escape my wisp maze. It's one of Noir's specialties, actually - Confound, confine, confuse, and condemn," the Nightwalker taunted, one foot tapping softly on the ground again, an act which did not escape Clemont's prying eyes this time.

"Something's not right here…" the bespectacled Gym Leader mused, darting his eyes around, "Dusknoir's using Psychic, and Gengar..." he turned to look at the battle between Gengar and Arcanine, and saw that the ghost was using Shadow Ball at the moment, "...doesn't seem to be the one behind the generation of the flames. That means, there might be another Pokemon somewhere that's responsible for the wisps...If that's the case, I know exactly what I can do to help."

For the first time since his arrival, the Gym Leader decided to enter the fray himself, with Luxray as his enforcer for this fight.

"There may be another enemy lurking around in the dark. Luxray, see if you can find it and flush it out," Clemont whispered to his Pokemon, which simply nodded in silent acknowledgment.

Easily living up to its notorious reputation as the Gleam Eyes Pokemon, Luxray's eyes then glowed up in contrast with the night. The lion-like creature then looked around, its penetrating vision easily piercing through the walls, houses and trees within the vicinity in search of the true conjurer of the endless streams of will-o-wisps.

It did not take long, and upon detection, Luxray promptly let out a loud threatening roar before discharging, unleashing a flare of powerful electricity at a cherry tree positioned behind the group and relatively far away from the battleground.

"What?" the Nightwalker muttered, surprised, and so were the others at the strange and seemingly meaningless attack.

The electricity hit the targeted tree, and at that moment, a Banette – to everyone's amazement - jumped out, completely paralyzed by the thunderous shock but not quite incapacitated.

The Banette let out a pained cry and at the exact moment it fell to its knees, the remaining will-o-wisps immediately faded away, much to Pikachu's relief.

"Gotcha!" Clemont exclaimed excitedly and proudly patted his Pokemon on the back, "Excellent detecting skills, Luxray."

The lion, in response, offered its trainer a smile and nodded.

"…That Banette…" muttered officer Jenny thoughtfully as she remembered the seemingly harmless doll the Nightwalker had thrown at her earlier. She quickly reached for the evidence bag around her belt and examined it only to find that its content was empty. Upon realization, her frown hardened and an angry noise escaped her lips, "That sneaky guy…He played us from the very start."

"Tch!" came a disgruntled noise from the ghost user as his secret agent was detected and ousted. "Well played, lemon head. I forgot about Luxray's natural vision…A mistake I'm not going to make again. Gengar, Toxic!"

The named ghost reappeared near Luxray's position and shot another stream of toxic shot at its named target. Unfortunately, Luxray, having already located Gengar beforehand and anticipated its movements, easily dodged the poison and approached the ghost.

"Good job," Clemont praised, pushing up his glasses proudly, "Now restrain that Gengar with Thunder Fang!"

Swiftly, Luxray bit on the ghost and painfully electrocuted it with the electrified fangs. For good measure, Luxray proceeded to lift Gengar up to cut off the ghost's contact with the ground. The force applied on Gengar gradually became much stronger as time progressed, effectively grounding and trapping the elusive shadow delver at last.

"Curses!" The Nightwalker muttered, "Noir, Psychic – Earth Spikes!" he commanded.

Dusknoir's body then lit up as it once again unleashed its telepathic wrath. The ground grumbled for a brief while. Subsequently, countless sharp and lethal spikes then jutted out from the ground at Dusknoir's beck and call.

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack to get out of the way!" Ash commanded his partner while trying to avoid getting impaled himself by rolling out of the way.

Ignoring the sharp pain caused by the burning sensation caused by the wisp, Pikachu picked up the pace and evaded the conjured earthly hazards, his movements precise with experience and with a bit of gracefulness mixed in as he went along.

"Alright, keep it up, pal! Get close and use Iron Tail!" Ash cheered on. However, he failed to notice the looming shadow behind Pikachu, cast by the newly created spikes underneath the dim streetlights.

He only realized too late when he spotted a maniacal grin on the obscured face of the Nightwalker, and his eyes widened in fear for his partner's wellbeing. His realization was a tad too late, unfortunately.

"Shadow Sneak!" the ghost user spoke up, and instantly, the shadow behind Pikachu rose up and became menacingly pointed, the tips lethally sharp.

"Get out of the way!" Ash urged, but Pikachu, due to its momentum, could not change its course in time. The electric mouse could only look back in horror as the pointy shadow closed in on his back.

"Arcanine, Extreme Speed!"

A large blur of red then materialized right next to Pikachu, and mere seconds before the shadow spike impaled the mouse, Arcanine was able to reach down and grab Pikachu with its mouth, thus saving the latter in the nick of time, much to Ash's joy and relief.

"Thank you, ma'am!" he turned around to express his gratitude to the officer, who only nodded before proceeding to give a follow-up command.

"Use your momentum and execute Flame Charge!"

A burst of flames then enveloped Arcanine. Pikachu, at the time riding on the dog's back, was spared from getting further burned by the fiery coat.

The momentum generated by Extreme Speed along with the increased boost in Speed resulted from the use of Flame Charge practically turned Arcanine into a fiery comet as it ran straight toward Dusknoir, tearing down and reducing any obstacles on its path to ashes.

The fire dog then impacted head-on with Dusknoir, this time actually knocking the bulky and sturdy ghost off its balance and successfully sending it flying backward with a loud bang.

"Noir!" shouted the Nightwalker, showing concern for the first time since the battle began.

Seizing the precious opportunity where all three ghosts were either down or unable to move, Ash subsequently ordered Pikachu to use Electro Ball on the injured Dusknoir. Despite the pain from the burn, Pikachu's attack was executed perfectly, and the electrically-charged orb rammed straight into Dusknoir, creating another explosive effect upon contact.

"Darn it!" The Nightwalker cursed again as he stayed clear of the blast radius, his face now showing pure anger and hatred at the group and their Pokemon, which can be easily seen despite being mostly obscured by his hood.

"Give it up, Nightwalker!" Ash spoke confidently, "You've lost. Surrender now before your partners are hurt any further!"

The ghost user's frown deepened, amber eyes darkening visibly underneath his hood. Ash could also hear a feral growl escaping the hooded individual's throat. However, much to Officer Jenny and Ash's shock, the frown was quickly reversed, and any trace of anger on his face immediately disappeared seconds afterward.

"Oh, I beg to differ," the hooded enigma said, his voice suddenly low and cryptic and completely lacking the mischievous tone that had been used consistently throughout the battle.

At that exact moment those words were spoken, Banette unexpectedly materialized right between Pikachu and Arcanine and raised its hands at both Pokemon, shocking everyone. Too stunned to react in time, both Arcanine and Pikachu were simultaneously hit by two powerful curses of Hex, whose power was doubled due to their already afflicted statuses. Both injured Pokemon then fell to the ground, panting heavily as the pain from their own statuses hurt them even further in addition to the curse.

"Ah, Phantom Force," the Nightwalker said, patting Banette on the head proudly, "Quite a useful move for ghosts, I must say. One moment he's here, and the next, boop! Just like that. Oh, and by the way, how was that Hex? Mind-shattering and unbearably excruciating, I hope."

"Ash!" Clemont shouted, concerned for his friend's wellbeing.

Unbeknownst to him, his distressed voice caused a slight distraction for Luxray. Unfortunately, that one second of distraction presented more than enough time for the sly and slippery Gengar to twist its body around and shot a stream of Toxic directly in the lion's eyes. The sudden assault caused Luxray's grip on the ghost to slack, and Gengar quickly merged with the shadow and disappeared from sight.

"Oh no, Luxray, are you okay?" the Gym Leader asked as he approached his Pokemon, worry written clearly on his face as the sight of Luxray being in pain from poisoning.

"See, what did I just tell you?" the Nightwalker talked again, reverting back to the use of the original taunting and patronizing tone. "This battle is not over yet. Not by a long shot."

At that moment, Gengar reemerged from its hideing spot, and even Dusknoir, which was still somewhat groggy and disoriented after consecutively receiving two powerful head-on attacks, stood up and took its stance between the smaller ghosts.

Officer Jenny, Ash and Clemont watched in horror as the ghosts stared at their weakened and afflicted partners, their malice and evil intentions unconcealed.

"Noir, Brick Break on Arcanine, Banette, Hex on Pikachu, Gengar, Shadow Ball on Luxray," the Nightwalker ordered the ghosts, all of which were too eager to comply.

The ghost user looked at the humans and their Pokemon one more time with a slight frown and spoke softly, "I'm sorry. You and I have no bad history with one another, so I regret to do this. But it was you who sought trouble where it could easily be avoided first. Sigh, you really shouldn't have interfered in my affairs in the first place. So, if you want to rue anything, rue your luck and your obstinacy."

A snap of fingers was heard coming from the Nightwalker, which was quickly succeeded by the echoing collective cries of the Pokemon.

…


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 4: The Mystery of the City

Mere moments before the three deadly ghosts could execute their finishing moves, a collection of cries belonging to various Pokemon was suddenly and clearly heard from far behind the group, echoing through the night and effectively tearing down the veil of tranquility like a sharp knife slicing through butter.

Before anyone could process what was happening, a barrage of Shadow Balls was unleashed, flying directly at the three ghosts and the Nightwalker on the other side of the battlefield and forcing them to cease their attacks to take cover behind a large tree nearby. With a discontent scowl, the hooded figure gestured to his three battlers. Immediately after receiving the man's signal, Gengar nodded and stealthily disappeared into the shadow, while Banette, with the aid of Dusknoir's Psychic, swiftly escaped to higher grounds and vanished in the cover of the night.

Only Dusknoir remained by the Nightwalker's side. Despite the severity of his current predicament, the enigmatic ghost user did not seem fazed, only slightly irritated by the fact that he had been interrupted in his work yet again.

"Oh crud! Can this stupid night possibly get any worse?" he muttered, looking at the newly arrived police force with a frown of discontent. "Argh, screw this, I'm out! Time to bail, Noir!"

Dusknoir complied and quickly created a gateway to the Spirit World. Unbeknownst to the others, both the ghost and its user quietly slipped inside the strange space. The portal then closed up, leaving absolutely no trace behind.

…

Back to Ash and the others…

Surprised by the cries of new Pokemon entering the scene, Ash, Clemont and Officer Jenny turned around, and much to their indescribable joy and relief, they saw a small group of police approaching their current location along with their Watchog partners, with Ash's Fletchinder and Clemont's Bunnelby taking the lead and acting as their guides.

"Fletchinder!" the dark-haired boy exclaimed joyously and hugged the bird when it flew straight into his open arms, clearly happy to be reunited with its trainer once again. "Thanks for coming and bringing help with you, buddy. Your timing couldn't have been better," Ash continued expressing his gratitude, which was readily accepted.

"Agreed! You two did well to lead the police here. Thanks!" Clemont spoke up from where he was as he gently patted Bunnelby's ears, relieved that backup had arrived. He then turned back to his poisoned Luxray. Clemont quickly retrieved a Pecha Berry from his backpack, which he had found before coming to the city, and gave it to the lion. Upon consumption, the berry took effect and Luxray was healed from its status condition.

He then offered Officer Jenny another one after that, who graciously accepted with a grateful smile before feeding it to her Arcanine. Similarly, the young scholar subsequently tossed Ash a Rawst Berry to treat his Pikachu's burn, a gesture Ash greatly appreciated.

"Thanks Clemont! You're a lifesaver," Ash spoke up and Pikachu chirped in agreement as he quickly devoured the item, cringing slightly as the foreign bitter taste first exploded in his mouth before swallowing the rest.

"You're welcome. I guess that should deal with the conditions, but we still need to bring them back to the Pokemon Center for further treatment. Pikachu and Arcanine certainly took a brutal beating from those ghosts."

"And speaking of ghosts, where's the Nightwalker?" Ash asked.

"Watchogs, he's hiding behind that tree over there. Surround him, and when you do, use Mean Look to prevent escape," Officer Jenny ordered, and the meerkats quickly set out to work in groups, making their way toward the designated spot.

The group of Watchogs then stood around the place and simultaneously executed the move before they jumped in. To their shock, however, the spot was empty.

"How?" Officer Jenny softly uttered in surprise as she received the negative shake of the lead Watchog. She went over to verify the Pokemon's claim herself and was dumbfounded at the sight of the empty space as well. "But...I clearly saw that he took cover at this exact spot. And nobody saw him leave…So...How?"

"What should we do, ma'am?" asked one officer nearby.

"…Have your squad and the Watchogs search every nook and cranny of the area. Find the Nightwalker and apprehend him! That's an order. But be very careful of the shadows. His Gengar is a tricky fighter. Now go!"

Instantly, the police scattered.

"You too, Luxray, search him out if you can." Said Clemont with a serious face, looking at the named Pokemon.

The lion complied, once again using its X-ray-like vision to penetrate through all solid materials within the vicinity. Nearby, the Watchogs, with their superb visions, left absolutely no corner unchecked and no stone unturned – in this case quite literally.

Twenty minutes later, however, absolutely no trace of the shady ghost user could be found, much to everyone's confusion and bewilderment. Even the best Pokemon tracers available at the time could not find a single shred of evidence that could help them determine where the Nightwalker had disappeared to.

"That can't be possible!" Officer Jenny frowned as she darted her eyes around hopelessly. "There's no place to escape to except above. But we never saw him leave the tree. Arcanine's flames are still there, so he couldn't have run off!" she spoke in frustration.

"But, he's gone…" Ash spoke up, trying to pick up the presence of the malicious aura again in vain. In his arms, Pikachu looked at his pensive trainer, whining in concern, "It's no use. I can't sense him anymore."

The fruitless search went on for another an undetermined period of time before Officer Jenny decided that it was enough. She had the place sealed up completely and ordered the newly arrived forensic team to find anything that could be useful, no matter how small.

Once that was done, she offered to escort the two boys back to the Pokemon Center using a borrowed police vehicle from one of the fellow officers. Ash and Clemont happily agreed.

…

"Here we are," said the policewoman as she stopped right in front of the Center and got off the vehicle. "You two should have your Pokemon rest up, and no more running off tonight, got it?" she stressed, turning to Ash with a warning glare. In response, the boy rigidly nodded, intimidated by the intensity of her gaze. Even Clemont, who was not the target of that glare, felt the same way.

"Yes, ma'am!" both boys answered at the same time, standing at attention and stiffly giving the officer a salute.

Satisfied and somewhat humored by the two trainers' reactions, the woman let out a soft giggle and then made her way to the Police Station nearby. Ash and Clemont let out sighs of relief when she was gone before they entered the Center together.

The exact moment the door opened, both Clemont and Ash were suddenly assaulted by a very worried Serena and a teary-eyed Bonnie, Clemont by the latter and Ash by the former.

"You're finally back!" Serena exclaimed joyously as she hugged the black-haired teen tightly, relief clearly written all over her expression. "I was so worried about you two."

Nearby, Bonnie was doing the same thing with her brother, gluing herself to the older boy's leg and seemingly refusing to let go until she was sure that he was not hurt.

"Are you two alright?" Serena asked again as she broke the hug, looking over her two companions from head to toe with keen eyes. "Is that dirt on your face? Did you get into a battle? Oh my gosh! What happened to Pikachu? He's hurt! is that a burn mark on his back? This is terrible, he needs to see nurse Joy right away before…"

"Hey hey, Serena, calm down and breathe. It's alright," Ash spoke up for the first time, overwhelmed by the stream of questions and frantic hand gestures of the girl, "Pikachu's fine, well, mostly. Clemont treated his burn already. He's still a little banged up, but otherwise unharmed. But thanks a lot for your concern anyway, you're a good friend, Serena!" he ended with a thankful smile, causing Serena to back away a few steps and turn around to hide her newly formed blush, much to the clueless boy's bewilderment.

"Well, that's…" she coughed out as she showed her back to Ash, embarrassed by her behavior, "...That's good to hear then…I'm glad you're all safe…" After that, she walked away quickly, promptly trying and failing to ignore the devious smirk that her own Braixen was shooting at her from where it was sitting.

When Serena turned around to confront Braixen about that, the fox immediately popped a macaron into its mouth and chewed, eyes close in bliss.

"Are you one hundred percent sure you didn't hurt yourself out there, big brother?" Bonnie continued to probe, not yet convinced. It took another while for Clemont to get her to believe that everything was okay, and that a good rest would suffice. Only then did she at last detach herself from his leg and let out an audible sigh.

"What a relief! I was so worried…" the little girl muttered as she held her Dedenne close. Suddenly, she felt a gentle hand placed on the top of her head, causing her to look up. Clemont smiled down at his sibling and soothingly ran his hand in circular motion in the child's hair, effectively calming her down and getting rid of whatever was left of her doubt and concern.

"We're fine, I promise. Thank you for caring about us, Bonnie," he whispered gently, his hand never once slowing down. The girl grew quiet for a moment before hugging her sibling again.

"Everything's okay. Well almost everything to be precise, we still need to get some treatment for Pikachu and Luxray, so let's see Nurse Joy, shall we?" said Clemont and everyone walked to the counter together.

After a brief wait, both Luxray and Pikachu walked out, both looking rejuvenated and healthy as ever. They went back to their respective trainer and settled down.

"Thank you Nurse Joy," Ash said, sincere, and the nurse of the Center bowed respectfully, "You're welcome," she replied before heading back to take care of other Pokemon in the Center.

"I see your Pokemon are healed," a new voice spoke up from behind, prompting the group to look back and see the newly arrived Officer Jenny standing behind them with a smile. Her expression and posture were noticeably less tense than when she was on the job, a fact that made everyone, especially the two boys, feel relieved and not intimidated...much.

"Yes, thanks for the ride, ma'am," Ash said with a bow, and the others followed. "But what about your Arcanine?"

"That's why I'm here now. I needed to file a report to my superiors first. Standard procedure and all."

"I see."

Ash wanted to ask about the shady figure they had encountered, but at that moment, he was not entirely sure if that was okay. After all, this Officer Jenny was very scary when she wanted to be, and the mention of the ghost user could potentially provoke her anger.

What he did not know was that the policewoman already took notice of his dilemma. With a soft sigh, she looked at the boy and spoke softly, "Wait for me here. I need to talk to all of you once my partner is healed up."

With that said, she made for the counter while the kids went to the lounge to get something to eat. After all, it had been a heavy and exhausting night for everyone.

…

True to her promise, Officer Jenny approached the group with her healthy and refreshed Arcanine and sat down. The woman then looked at each and every single one of the kids before her and began to talk.

"Since you are all new in the city, it's only fair that you should know about what's happening around here and be ready to protect yourselves at all times," she spoke up, voice serious. Everyone nodded and leaned forward a little.

"For the last two years, there have been many strange and unexplained disappearances taking place all around the city, and the people that went missing were never found. At first, we had no idea who or what was behind the incidents, for they occurred at a completely random manner, and there were no patterns whatsoever."

She paused a little bit, checking to see if the kids were listening. Once she was sure they were paying attention, she continued her story.

"...Until one day, we got a survivor. When she arrived at the station, she was utterly terrified and kept muttering about "a man with amber eyes and a malicious smile" before she fainted on the spot. After a few days in intensive care, the poor girl finally woke up and answered some of our questions. From what little we managed to gather, the suspect that had attacked her specialized in Ghost-type Pokemon. She even claimed that his main Pokemon was a Dusknoir. Her witness account and description of the culprit perfectly matched the one we encountered tonight, from the Pokemon used to his outfits and even the shark-like teeth and the amber eyes."

"…The Nightwalker…" Ash muttered as his face turned pensive, the feeling of the intense aura of pure malice still fresh in his mind. In response, Officer Jenny nodded ruefully and scowled.

"Yes, that's the name the people of this city gave the suspect due to his tendency to strike when night falls. After giving us the description, the surviving victim moved away shortly afterward, and we've never heard from her again since. The appearance of the Nightwalker is exactly the reason why we need to enact a curfew to ensure that nobody wanders off and never returns again. The curfew had been working seemingly well for a while, until two days ago, when the Nightwalker resurfaced and struck again, and the victim that time was a man named Timothy Foster, a senior of the Trainer Program at Bilgin Academy. "

"That's horrible…" Serena commented, holding a trembling Bonnie closer to her side and ran her hand through the latter's hair soothingly. The young blonde looked close to tears judging on the fact that her big blue eyes were stormy and somewhat moist.

"Hey, uh, Bonnie and Serena, you don't have to be here you know," Clemont said to the two girls and offered them a sympathetic smile, understanding their fear because he himself was not exactly a fan of scary things. "Why don't you two head to bed first? It's rather late already."

"Nah, I'm good…" Bonnie said before Serena could. "I'm not leaving big brother or Ash behind again…" the young child muttered and wiped her ushered tears away, putting on a brave façade shortly afterward.

Knowing that his sister was incredibly stubborn when she was in the mood, Clemont only sighed in resignation and leaned back to allow Officer Jenny to continue her explanation.

"…After the most recent incident, we doubled our forces and efforts in the city, but somehow, the Nightwalker still managed to elude us the way he did tonight. However, it was thanks to you, young man, that we now have another survivor and eyewitness. On behalf of the city's precinct, I would like to thank you for your support, even though I personally do not approve of your reckless behavior."

Officer Jenny's voice was both sincere and reprimanding at the same time, causing Ash to look away in embarrassment. From which tone, however, he did not know. The others only shot him adoring looks and, in Serena's case, some stiffed giggles at his abashed expression.

"…I'm just glad I could help…is all…" Ash replied after a while.

"That reminds me, Ash," Clemont spoke up, eyes wide with realization, "You said you could sense that someone was hurt, but you didn't tell me how you did that," the boy asked, and at that moment, all eyes were on him in curiosity, making the young trainer flinch.

"Yes, now that you mention it, how did you do that?" asked Officer Jenny in a slow and calculating tone. "Are you a Psychic? I've heard stories about some people who possess real-life Psychic powers and abilities like clairvoyance before, but I never met one in person."

"Well, actually," Ash began, "I don't have any Psychic powers or anything like that. It's just that I can sense the aura of people and Pokemon if I concentrate really hard, that's all."

"Aura?" Bonnie asked, unfamiliar with the term.

"You know, the thing that certain Pokemon like Riolu or Lucario can pick up. I don't know how to explain it myself, but it's like the spirit that I can see coming out from a person's body," Ash explained, and the little girl made a face of understanding.

"You can sense aura?" Clemont exclaimed and stood up, shocked at the new discovery regarding his travelling companion.

"That's amazing!" exclaimed Bonnie and Serena, their eyes filled with wonder and awe, "You never told us you could do something as awesome as sensing aura."

"Well, it must have slipped my mind, and bedside, it's not really special. My aura abilities are pretty weak compared to the more experienced users I met in my travels."

"You met other Aura sensitive humans?" Clemont all but shouted into Ash's face, surprising the latter and Pikachu as a result. "That's amazing! I've heard about their existence, but never actually believed the stories were real until now. This warrants further studies, so, how do you sense the auras? Is there anything you need to do before that? Or, what are the properties of auras?"

"Whoa, calm down, Clemont! Yes, and they are called Aura Guardians," Ash moved back in his seat to keep his distance from his crazed friend, whose mind had once again been swept away by his insatiable thirst for knowledge. "As for the rest, I didn't catch any of what you've just said."

"Pika pi!" Pikachu cried, supporting his trainer in his attempt to calm down the young inventor.

"Big brother!" Bonnie spoke up this time, hands on her hips as she stood up, "You're scaring Ash and Serena and miss Jenny! If you keep acting all crazy and hyped up like this, how are you going to find a nice woman who will take an interest in you and take care of you in the future, huh? A woman like Officer Jenny here, for example," she scolded her older sibling, with a reprimanding look on her face, much to everyone's humor.

The policewoman only looked at the two with an unreadable expression on her face while Ash and Serena tried and failed to stifle their amused laughter. They could not possibly get used to the little girl's unwavering dedication to her self-started quest to find Clemont's a bride no matter how often it took place.

"Wha…Take care of…I don't…Miss Jenny, it's not…Please ignore her...Oh, I don't believe this…Stop saying things like that, Bonnie! You're embarrassing me!" the older blonde stammered out with a beet-red face. Everyone else just laughed at the two's exchange and antics for the next couple of minutes, even Officer Jenny and her Arcanine.

…

Once everyone had settled down, Officer Jenny turned her attention back to Ash.

"You said your name is Ash, right?" she asked the boy, who nodded in confirmation. "Alrght, Ash, about your aura sense, can you pinpoint the exact location of those you sense?"

"Unfortunately, no. Like I said, my aura abilities are not well developed like other users I know, so it comes and goes very suddenly like what happened tonight. However, I could narrow down the location and use my Pokemon to help locate the target."

"…That's good enough. Ash, I really hate to involve a civilian in a police investigation, but since only you can sense when the Nightwalker appears and only you have ever been able to confront him directly in battle, I would like to ask you a favor. Do you mind?"

"No, of course not. You can ask me anything," the young trainer replied earnestly, "If I can help, I will."

"…Well, since it's late already, and I'm sure you all must be exhausted from your journey. If possible, tomorrow around eight, please come to the Police Station and meet me there. We'll talk then. For now, please rest up and regain your strength. Children shouldn't stay up too late."

"Alright then, we'll see you tomorrow," Ash replied, and the others nodded in agreement.

With another thankful smile and a nod, Officer Jenny stood up, said goodbye to the group and exited the Center. Once she was gone, Ash stood up and stretched his tired bones, satisfied when he heard them pop into place.

"Okay then," the boy said with a huge yawn, "Let's hit the hay as well. I'm beat!"

"Now that's a good idea," agreed Serena as she picked Bonnie up, "It looks like we'll have a busy day tomorrow."

"Yeah…" Ash agreed and walked away with the others quickly following behind "…The Nightwalker…" he muttered in private as the image of the hooded figure with a pair of malicious glowing amber orbs and a sinister ear-to-ear grin once again resurfaced in his still fresh mind.

That image along with the memories of the recent battle would continue to haunt him for the rest of the night.

…


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 5: A Visit in the Night

As the hours continued to get later and later into the night, Ash became more restless. The boy kept tossing and turning, unable to succumb to the allure of sleep no matter how hard he tried.

With a tired groan, the young boy slowly at up, two fingers pinching his temple in a exhausted motion.

"Of all times I have to get insomnia…" Ash spoke quietly, mindful to keep his voice below a whisper to avoid waking up the other occupants of the room.

Ash looked around and felt a pang of jealousy in his heart as he laid eyes on a peacefully sleeping Clemont on the other side of the small room and an equally blissful Pikachu lying flat on his stomach on his bed. The electric mouse seemed to be having a particularly good dream, as evidenced by the silly smile on his face as well as the occasional delighted noises he made.

"What I wouldn't give to be able to sleep like that now," Ash mumbled after a sigh.

Having already given up on the idea of getting a good night's rest, albeit with much reluctance, the boy then got out of his bed, being extra careful with his movements to keep from rousing his Pokemon partner.

After pulling the blanket up and draping it over his soundly asleep Pikachu, who was currently licking his fingers in his sleep – much to the boy's amusement - Ash put on his day clothes and walked outside, hoping that a good walk in tranquility of nature coupled with the fresh, uncontaminated air of the hours of darkness would be able to help him relax.

"It's cold," Ash mumbled to himself, wrapping both arms around his body as he felt a sudden gust of chilly air brush against his skin.

Once his body had finally adapted to the sudden change of temperature and his shaking had subsided, Ash began walking and allowed his gaze to wander toward the bright moon high above.

To him, everything in this city at night was a charming, like a picture of uncontaminated beauty and of perfection itself. The moon shed its soft, gentle and dim rays of light down on the earthly soil above. The heavenly light helped chase away some of the brooding darkness of the night and tenderly illuminate the nearby flora. The subtle contrast created by those dim beams of light in conjunction with the gloomy, cold veil of darkness effectively came together and painted a picture filled of indescribable splendor and flawlessness.

Ash was, by no means, an individual who possessed a good artistic sense like some of his past and current travelling companions, but to him, the picture of untainted nature that he was witnessing at that very moment was undeniably and breathtakingly mesmerizing.

"What a night!" the young boy whispered softly as another gust of mildly chilly air washed across his body. "If only Pikachu could see this."

After walking around the empty area surrounding the Pokemon Center for an undetermined amount of time, Ash finally sat down on a bench close by.

Ash turned his gaze to the divine moon above once more, quietly basking in the tender light shining directly down on where he was sitting.

In the midst of the tranquil clearing, the softly blowing winds, to Ash, sounded very much like a lullaby, putting his insomniac mind at peace.

"This is nice…" he muttered, and the rest that came out shortly afterward was reduced to incoherent mumblings as the lone boy began to relax in his seat, his eyes growing heavier and heavier.

The tender song of nature continued to play in his ears, and before Ash knew, he had fallen already asleep.

A veil of complete silence descended.

…

…Tap…Tap…

Ash was suddenly jolted awake when he heard a faint sound of footsteps faraway, echoing with perfect clarity and cutting through the stillness of the night.

…Tap…Tap…Tap…

Ash, still trying to open his heavy eyelids fully, heard those sounds again. They must have come from the same direction as the initial one, but only this time, they were closer – much closer.

…Tap…Tap…Tap…Tap.

The footsteps stopped, and at that moment, Ash suddenly had a sinking feeling in his stomach which alerted him to the belief that something was wrong – dreadfully wrong. No longer could he pick up the soft gusts of wind blowing through his hair or sweeping against the flowers within the area.

It was like the cold nighttime air had vanished altogether, replaced by muffed murmurings and whispers of entities unknown.

Popping his eyes open with a start and all sleepiness completely forgotten in one moment of wariness, Ash then lifted his head up and studied his surroundings.

The moon was still shining high above, and the street was still completely void of pedestrians. All things as far as his eyes could see were still heavily under the enchantment by the deep spell of sleep as they should be.

And yet, something felt different.

"What happened to the air?" Ash asked himself as he sat up in his bench. "Why is it suddenly freezing like this?"

…Tap...Tap.

The sounds of footsteps were heard coming from directly behind him, and in that one single second, a sense of dread unlike none Ash had ever felt before bubbled and bloomed in his stomach.

He did not turn around, but he definitely could feel it – the presence of someone or _something_ standing right behind him, close enough to reach out and possibly touch him. That thought alone was enough to send another wave of chills running up and down his spine.

"Nice night, isn't it?" asked a sudden voice, soft, quiet and barely above the level of a whisper. However, against the eerie silence of the atmosphere at the time, it was easily heard, loud and awfully clear.

In an instant, Ash shot out of his bench and, on instinct, swiftly moved a few steps forward to create some sort of distance between himself and the one standing close by. Only then did he turn around.

A glowing pair of amber eyes stared directly into Ash's own, shining ominously and brightly in stark contrast with the monochromic background.

Ash, with eyes wide open and mouth agape, could not find it in himself to even utter anything at that instant, and he felt his entire being go numb at the sudden appearance of the lone individual before him. There, directly underneath the pale, almost ghostly moonlight stood a figure clad in a dark-colored pair of jeans and a midnight-black hoodie that shrouded most of his face.

The only features that stood out against the thick shadow cast by the drawn hood were those amber orbs and a large, sinister grin, which fully showed the rows of sharp, shark-like teeth that the enigmatic character possessed.

"…Nightwalker…" Ash muttered out the name of the figure before him once he had calmed down from the sudden surprise, his expression now serious and wary.

At the sound of his name, the hooded creature's grin grew larger. Quickly, Ash reached for one of his Pokeballs, only to realize with horror that he had left all of them behind in his room.

"Missing something?" the Nightwalker stepped forward, his body phasing through the wooden bench that Ash had fallen asleep on, and approached the defenseless trainer. "Perhaps I can be of assistance."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Ash felt another presence behind him, and he turned around. His eyes immediately grew wide, and the young trainer looked like he had somehow completely lost all control of his body. Ash could not will his limbs to move as he looked at the newly arrived Dusknoir a little behind.

Or to be more specific, the tiny bundle that said Dusknoir was holding in its fisted hand.

"Pikachu!" Ash shouted at the top of his lungs as he made an instinctual move to dash forward. However, his legs did not move as commanded, and his entire body felt numb all over – paralyzed. He looked down, and saw that both Banette and Gengar were holding tightly onto his legs, their pointy digits on their appendages painfully digging through his skin.

"Let go of him!" Ash demanded, struggling helplessly against the hold of the two ghosts while at the same time looking at the limp form of his beloved partner, whose face was contorted in agony as he continued to stay asleep.

The quiet, pain-filled moans Pikachu elicited broke the helpless trainer's heart even more, and yet he could only stand still and do nothing.

"This is exactly what will happen if you try to defy me," said the Nightwalker in the same bone-chilling tone all of the sudden, his mouth suddenly an inch away from Ash's ear. Without even turning around, Ash could feel his cold and malicious grin, taunting him even further as he whispered his threat.

Ash's eyes then grew larger as he watched Dusknoir forcefully tightened its grasp around Pikachu, forcing the smaller creature to wake up and loudly cry out as an intense and unbearable wave of pain hit him. Pikachu's cries were loud and filled with utter agony, echoing far and wide. The bone-chilling silence of the night only served to amplify those painful noises tenfold, assaulting Ash's ears and subsequently numbing all of his senses altogether.

With each cry that reached his ear, the desperate trainer felt an equally excruciating stab in his heart, and before long, his control over his own emotions crumbled.

"Pikachu!" Ash shouted as he struggled even more against his captors, but as expected, his attempts were useless. The claw-like digits restraining him only dug deeper into his legs.

The yellow mouse continued to cry in the merciless Dusknoir's hold. The pressure quickly proved to be too much, and tears escaped Pikachu's eyes.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt, save yourself!" Ash pleaded with his partner. Unfortunately, his command was not registered.

The hold only grew stronger, and so did Pikachu's anguished and terrified cries.

"Pikachu! Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded once again, and would continue to give out the same order again and again for a long, unspecified period of time, screaming and screaming repeatedly in complete helplessness until his voice went hoarse.

After an unknown amount of time had passed, Pikachu stopped struggling and went limp completely in Dusknoir's fist.

Ash stopped moving almost immediately at that sight. The boy's mouth was open, yet no more words or commands came out. Instead, only the shaky, broken whispers of the still Pokemon's name were produced.

"Like I said," the Nightwalker whispered into his ear once more, but this time, Ash could only vaguely hear what was being spoken, "This _will_ happen if you try to defy me. This is not a threat but a promise, so if you want to avoid this scenario, leave this city immediately."

As soon as the last word left the figure's mouth, the ground disappeared underneath his feet, and Ash fell into a bottomless pit of eternal darkness. Before the mouth closed up completely, the young dejected trainer looked up and saw the figure of the Nightwalker looking down on him.

In his hazy and clouded vision, he could not make out whether the ghost user was shooting him a gleeful, maniacal grin…

Or a saddened, heartfelt scowl...

Seconds later, everything went dark.

…

"ASH! Wake up!"

"Pika Pi!"

Suddenly, the young boy's eyes shot open and he immediately sat up with a start, panting heavily and completely drenched in cold sweats.

Quickly, Ash moved his wide, haunted eyes around to survey the area he was currently in, and was met with the sight of a very concerned and worried Clemont looking at him. He then looked to his side, and widened his eyes the moment they laid on his Pikachu – up and moving.

"Clemont? Pikachu?" he asked in a whispery tone, seemingly unable to believe what he was seeing.

"Yes," the blonde boy quickly answered, "It's me, Ash. It's me. Now come on, I need you to breathe with me, slow breathes…That's it. Take slow and steady breathes, that's right. Just keep going like that."

Ash followed the other boy's instruction, and he managed to calm down immensely. With Clemont's aid, his breathing soon returned to normal, and his posture relaxed somewhat.

"Ash?" Clemont asked again, the concern he held for his friend's wellbeing was clearly conveyed in his voice.

"Pika pi?" cried Pikachu, worried.

"Pikachu?" Ash asked, his eyes studying the electric mouse next to him, who looked like he had just experienced the biggest scare of his entire life. The mouse's face was scrunched up, and his he looked close to tears as he approached his trainer and best friend.

"I…I'm okay now…" Ash stammered out when he saw Pikachu climb onto his lap and looked at him straight in the eye. With a forced smile, he collected the yellow mouse into his chest and ran his hand through his fur, "Thanks for worrying about me," Ash added softly as he held the Pokemon closer.

"Ash?" Clemont asked after a while, and Ash looked up. "Are you alright? You were shouting a lot in your sleep. Did you have a nightmare or something?"

Ash grew silent and looked down at Pikachu once again. The mouse returned his stare.

"…Yeah, just a nightmare…" Ash said at last, patting Pikachu on the head and offering a small smile of assurance to calm down Clemont.

The other boy did not seem convinced, but he did not press, either.

"Clemont, could you please leave us alone for a while?"

The addressed boy was slightly surprised by the sudden request, but like before, he did not pry. With an understanding nod, he stood up and went out to change and get ready for the new day.

"And Clemont," Ash called again, catching his attention, "Please don't tell the girls about this."

The blonde boy lingered, silently looking at his friend for a while longer before nodding again.

"…I understand," he replied, much to Ash's relief.

After that, Clemont left the room, leaving only Ash and his first Pokemon partner inside. Immediately, the dark-haired boy tightened his hold around Pikachu and once again drew him into his chest. The electric mouse only stayed silent the entire time, and let out small, quiet sounds to soothe his trainer at best he could.

The two best friends would remain so for quite a long time.

And as a result, neither spotted the strange movements in the shadow cast on the open window by the bright, warm sunlight nearby.

Underneath the shade just outside the Pokemon Center, a small figure casually dressed in a pair of dark jogging jersey bottoms and a drawn up hooded sweatshirt stood in silence, completely obscured from view.

"…Good job, Gengar," he spoke quietly as his eyes studied the open window on the second floor, and as if on cue, the named ghost emerged from the shadow with its perpetual grin plastered on its face. "That was one hell of a Nightmare indeed," he spoke again before tearing his gaze away from the building.

"Now then, let us hope that the message is enough to chase those meddlesome outsiders away…I don't need any more sudden interference or surprises," he whispered with his head down and left the scene shortly afterward, with Gengar faithfully following his footsteps in his shadow.

Back inside the Pokemon Center, Ash was still holding Pikachu close to his heart, but the boy had managed to calm down considerably since waking up.

"_This will happen if you try to defy me,"_ the Nightwalker's warning from his nightmare relayed itself again in his head along with the horrible sight of Pikachu going limp in Dusknoir's ruthless grasp.

Tightening his embrace around the mouse and pressing his face closer against his chest, Ash suddenly put on an extremely rare expression of unconcealed anger, one not many knew he was even capable of making.

"…_Nightwalker…I don't care if you threaten me, but when you involve my friends in your threat…"_ Ash thought crossly, his scowl growing more pronounced as the nightmare, which - Ash was most certain - was not a natural occurrence, replayed itself in his head once more.

"It gets personal!" Ash, unbeknownst to Pikachu, muttered.


End file.
